Container



May 31, 1938. w. H. ST. THOMAS ET AL 2,119,122

CONTAINER Filed June 22, 1937 2 Sheets-Sheet l ATTORNEY.

Patented May 31, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT QEFIQE CONTAINER York Application June 22, 1937, Serial No. 149,604

3 Claims.

This invention relates to containers and more particularly to the type of containers generally referred to as billfolds.

The objects of the invention are to provide 5 a container having a plurality of pockets and utilizing a minimum of waste of the material forming the exposed portions of the container; to provide a construction enabling cheaper materials to be used where double thickness of extended area are required; to provide for a reinforced pocket structure from bottom and end flaps without any waste of the more expensive material forming the flaps; to employ an integral piece of material as a reinforcement in both of the flaps forming the pockets; to enable the container to be readily doubled or folded in use midway of its length; to avoid bulkiness in mak ing the fold regardless of the thickness of bills or other papers therein; to enable the partition to fold without buckling irrespective of how close or how far a space it may be from the outer wall of the container due to bills or other matter within the pocket; to secure a container of economical, efficient and pleasing construction; and 25 to obtain other advantages and results as may be brought out in the following description.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a face view of the extended container looking at the faces containing pockets 30. and which is generally doubled in use to bring the two pockets in juxtaposition;

Figure 2 is a similar view showing the side and end flaps extended before being finally secured in place;

Figure 3 is a similar view with the side and end flaps extended and with a pair of inner wall members likewise extended;

Figure 4 is a view corresponding to Figure 3, with one of the inner walls not yet inserted;

Figure 5 is an end or edge View of Figure 4;

Figures 6 and '7 are cross sectional views on lines 56 and l'l of Figure 8; and

Figure 8 is a perspective view of the extended container showing the loose end of one partition partially projecting from the container for illustrating the fact that said partition is unattached at that end.

Containers of the billfold type have heretofore included certain drawbacks of manufacture and use which the present invention seeks to overcome. The container illustrated herein has certain parts which are in themselves in the art, but are combined with other parts and in the new combination present a utility not heretofore attained by billfolds of the prior art. As here shown, the billfold provides an outer wall iii which is the size and shape of the extended billfold, preferably rectangular and slightly larger in each direction than the usual dimension of legal tender of the paper variety. Integrally formed with this end wall are end flaps ll, ll and a pair of bottom flaps l2, l2 along one longitudinal side of the wall In, said end and bottom flaps being separated by an intervening short tongue l3. Said tongue is turned back onto the inside surface of wall Ill midway of the length of the end wall so as to provide a reinforcement thereat and is preferably cemented in place as shown in Figure 4. In use the billfold will be doubled at the mid part where this tongue is positioned and the tongue will keep the edge from fraying or ripping at this point of most severe Wear.

The container likewise provides another wall section or partition M, the mid section l5 of which is preferably of the same surfacing material as the first mentioned wall member, but which preferably has end sections IE, IS of fabric. The mid section l5 and end sections i6, 56 comprise the said inner wall or partition and while the length thereof is substantially the length of the outside wall I0, the height is preferably less than the outside wall so there will be an upper margin ll of the outside wall projecting above the said inside wall or partition. Likewise, the lower edge of the inside wall or partition preferably is juxtaposed at the mid part thereon to the lower edge of the outside wall where tongue I3 is bent over, said tongue being thereby covered by mid portion I5 of the side wall. The lower edge of said inside wall toward the ends of the mid section preferably curves away from or is offset from the lower edge of the outside wall, as clearly shown in Figure 3, and thereby avoids bulkiness along the fold line of the outside wall and bottom flaps. The utilization of the fabric end portions l6, M5 for this inner wall or partition l4 provides a hinge effect when the billfold is closed thereby lessening bulkiness and increasing flexibility of the finished container. This is especially desirable where the container is to have a wad of money or paper folded therein, the fabric readily accommodating the shorter length required of the inside folded wall from the greater length required of an outside folded wall, and will permit the midsection l5 to bend at its middle and extend without wrinkling from the bent middle to the end edges thereof. The mid portion I5 may be secured in any desired manner to the fabric end portions, lines of stitching I8, I8 being shown as illustration on one means of assemblying.

In constructing the billfold of the present invention, each end portion thereof is provided. with an inner Wall member I9 which is approximately double the height of partition l4 and is doubled upon itself lengthwise of the billfold so as to provide an inner section 20 next one face of partition I4 and another section 2I against the offset face of said partition. The bottom juxtaposed margins of these two sections 20 and 2I in the completed billfold, as well as the juxtaposed outer ends of those sections are preferably skived so as to reduce bulkiness at those edges. The outer end margins of the fabric end portion I6 of partition I4 is interposed between the juxtaposed skived end margins of sections 20 and 2| of the inner wall l9, and preferably cement is applied to those skived end margins so as to both secure the ends of partition I4 and to retain the sections folded together. Likewise, to retain the said sections 20 and 2| folded around the mid part of partition I4 one of the longitudinal juxtaposed bottom edges has a tongue 22 thereon Which folds on to and is cemented to the other section 20. It will thus be observed that when sections 2|] and 2| are folded over and secured in the completed container that they are open only at their ends which are toward the middle part of the container and thus comprise pockets which are directed to the middle of the container separated a short distance longitudinally thereof with the intervening space faced by the mid portion l5 of the partition I4.

At the rear face of the rear section 2| of each inner wall member I9 is an anchor piece 23,.

which so far as known is an entirely novel element in construction of billfolds. This anchor piece is preferably shaped to correspond to the utimate desired shape of the inside pocket flaps, and being here shown as extending lengthwise of the billfold for a part of the height and length thereof and having its end next the outer end of the said billfold tapered upwardly to the upper part of the billfold substantially to the height of the said inner wall member I9. Preferably this anchor 23 is of a reinforcing material and is stitched to the section 2| against which it is juxtaposed, the stitching preferably extending along the longitudinal lower edge and along the end edge of said section. The end flap II and adjacent bottom flap I2 of the front wall I!) are bent over into flatwise juxtaposition against the anchor piece 23, each of those flaps having appropriate edge tongues 24, 25 for folding onto the inside face of the said anchor. The tongues will preferably be skived to reduce bulkiness, and one flap will be arranged to have an overlapping skived margin 26 upon the other flap along their meeting joint, all of these skived margins being preferably held in place with a suitable adhesive in a finished container. The anchor 23 is an integral piece of material underlying both end flap II and bottom flap l2 so as to take the strain of any cards or other contents necessitated in the pocket formed thereby, and avoids any strain on the surfacing material composing the flaps H and I2 or any strain upon overlapped joint or skived margin 26 of the flap.

Interposed between the front wall [0 and the inner walls I9, IS with their contained partition I4, is a divider or partition 21 which extends substantially the length of the container and substantially the height thereof, both dimensions being somewhat less, however, than front wall In. This partition 21. accordingly establishes two full length pockets on opposite sides thereof for receiving legal tender of the paper variety, checks or other papers. This partition is entire- 1y free at one end and is retained by an attachment at its other end in order that it may fold mid way of its length and remains smooth re gardless of how much thickness there is to fold around or in consequence of the contents of the container in either or both of the full length pockets. As here shown said partition has a tongue 28 near its upper edge and projecting longitudinal outward from the end of the said partition. This tongue is secured to the end edge of the front section 20 of the inner wall I9 as by a row of stitching 29, and a similar tongue 38 may be provided near that end edge but projecting from the bottom edge of the partition so as to be secured to the bottom edge of the same section 20 by a line of stitching 3| in retention of the partition entirely at one side of the mid fold of the container. The other end of the partition is free from any stitching or other holding means, and is somewhat less in length than the length of the front wall It, so as to permit the partition to slide as required with respect to the front Wall.

We claim:

1. A container of the billfold type comprising an outer wall having portions thereof folded to form inner walls, a pocket forming member interposed between said outer and inner walls, said member having an anchor piece secured thereto adjacent the inner walls, and said inner Walls having their innermost edges folded around and secured to corresponding edges of said anchor piece.

2. A container of the billfold type comprising an outer Wall having. portions thereof folded to form inner walls, a pocket forming member interposed between said outer and inner walls, said member having an anchor piece secured thereto adjacent the inner walls, and said inner walls having their innermost edges folded around and secured to corresponding edges of said anchor piece, and said anchor piece secured to the said pocket forming member along the end and. bottom to define an upwardly and inwardly opening pocket.

3. A container of the billfold type comprising an outer Wall having portions thereof folded to form inner walls, a pocket forming member on each end of said billfold interposed between said outer wall and inner walls, said member having an anchor piece secured thereto adjacent the inner walls, said inner walls having their innermost edges folded around and secured to corresponding edges of said anchor piece, and a partition interposed between said outer Wall and pocket forming members, said partition being attached to one endto one of the pocket forming members and free at its other end with respect to the outer wall and other pocket forming member so as to be slidable within the pocket when the billfold is folded transverse to the length of said walls and partition.

WILLIAM H. ST. THOMAS. OTTO D. WEYDENER. 

